Leader who’s been mysteriously absent arrives in Puerto Rico

PORT-AU-PRINCE, HAITI>> Haiti’s prime minister landed in Puerto Rico on Tuesday, answering a key question on the minds of all Haitians ever since armed gangs plunged the long-suffering Caribbean nation into near anarchy: Where in the world is he?

The embattled Ariel Henry, who assumed power following the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse, has been notably absent since the country’s latest and most serious outbreak of violence started last week. Henry has stayed silent as he crisscrosses the world, from South America to Africa, with no announced date of return.

Meanwhile, armed groups have seized on the power void, exchanging gunfire with police at Haiti’s main international airport on Monday and instigating a mass escape from the country’s two biggest prisons.

Even a decree declaring a state of emergency and curfew to restore order lacked Henry’s imprint. It was signed by his finance minister, who is serving as acting prime minister.

“It’s the million-dollar question,” said Jake Johnston, a research associate at the Washington-based Center for Economic and Policy Research. “The fact that he hasn’t even opened his mouth since the violence began has stoked all sorts of speculation.”

By Tuesday afternoon, the mystery seemed to ease after officials said Henry landed in Puerto Rico. He arrived late in the afternoon to San Juan on a chartered flight that originated in New Jersey. Tracking data showed the flight was heading toward Dominican Republic, which shares with Haiti the island of Hispaniola, but circled mid-flight before diverting to Puerto Rico. Hours before he arrived in Puerto Rico, the Dominican government announced that it was immediately suspending all air traffic with Haiti.

Meanwhile, Jimmy Chérizier, a former elite police officer who leads a federation of gangs that has claimed responsibility for the attacks, repeated Tuesday his goal of blocking Henry’s return and forcing his resignation.

“Our goal is to break the system,” Chérizier, who fashions himself a Robin Hood crusader and goes by the name of Barbecue, told journalists at an impromptu news conference in a slum in the Haitian capital of Port-au-prince. The gang leader was surrounded by men in ski masks carrying heavy assault rifles. “We are fighting against Ariel with the last drop of our blood,” he said.

Gangs opened fired on police late Monday outside the Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-prince, where Henry would likely land should he return home.

An armored truck could be seen on the tarmac shooting at gangs trying to enter the airport as scores of employees and other workers fled from whizzing bullets. The airport was closed when the attack occurred, with no planes operating and no passengers on site. It remained closed Tuesday.

Schools and banks were also closed Tuesday, and public transport ground to a standstill.

“Haiti is now under the control of the gangs. The government isn’t present,” said Michel St-louis, 40, standing in front of a burned-down police station in the capital. “I’m hoping they can keep Henry out so whoever takes power can restore order.”

While Haiti’s problems run deep and defy any quick fix, Henry himself is increasingly unpopular. His inability to govern effectively has stoked calls for him to step aside that the gangs are also embracing, if only to advance their own criminal interests, Johnston said.